Ice Cube Exits Jack Black Comedy Oh Hell No After Refusing To Get COVID-19 Vaccine

Actor Ice Cube ("Ride Along") has walked away from a starring role in an upcoming comedy after declining the producers' request to get vaccinated against COVID-19. Cube will no longer appear in "Oh Hell No," which would have paired him with Jack Black ("School of Rock") on screen for the first time. Black is still attached to play one of the lead characters, but according to The Hollywood Reporter, the production is pushing back its start date and is on the hunt to find a replacement for Cube. (Jack Black injured himself shooting a bit for the last episode of TBS's "Conan," so Black's recovery time might also be contributing to the production's delayed start.)

Ice Cube originally joined this project back in June, when it was announced that he would be playing a character named Will. "Oh Hell No" tells the story of what happens when Sherman (played by Jack Black) falls in love with Will's mother. That's obviously a bit of an unconventional premise, and it sounds like it will need a script with a light touch and the perfect performers to be able to successfully achieve this high-wire act. Black and Cube seemed like a promising on-screen duo, but according to THR, Cube has left the project after refusing to get vaccinated. Not only that, but the report says he turned his back on a $9 million payday.

Ice Cube is one of the most successful rapper-turned-actors in Hollywood history, and he's been a major movie star for decades. Obviously none of us are privy to his personal financial situation, but from the outside looking in, it doesn't appear that he needs the money. He's not in a "I'll take any job I can because I have to pay off insane debts and cover the cost of my own pyramid tomb" phase like Nicolas Cage was a few years ago. But $9 million is nothing to sneeze at, so he must feel very strongly about this to walk away.

In the unlikely event that you're waiting on a film website to weigh in before you make a decision about whether or not to get the vaccine, let me assure you that we at /Film encourage everyone to get vaccinated as quickly as possible. We're in month nineteen (19!) of a global pandemic that has taken the lives of millions of people and wreaked untold havoc across nearly every aspect of human life, and vaccines are our best tool to fight this deadly virus. This probably won't be the last time we write about an actor who leaves a project because they refuse to take a vaccine, but for everyone's sake, I sincerely hope the remaining instances are few and far between.